ABSTRACT

With the conclusion of the Second Indochina War, the governments of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam quickly initiated “socialist” revolutions. The speed of implementation was particularly surprising in Vietnam where the communists had long promised a gradual reunification of North and South. When Vietnam was reunified in 1975, the North Vietnamese economy had already achieved a high degree of socialism. Most peasants were members of cooperative units, and the bulk of staple food production was carried out by these cooperatives. After decades of struggle, members of the Vietnamese Communist Party were understandably in a rush to implement socialism throughout the country. In line with this thinking, as the Hanoi government realized the scope of the problems it faced in the South, so the answers appeared to lie in tighter control of the wayward southerners. The government and people of Laos have enjoyed a long, involved history of foreign aid dependence.